Thanksgiving Dinner
by RunningBacon
Summary: This is a little oneshot that was written in the spirit of Thanksgiving. A Jedi Master brings his new friend to a dinner with his family. His friend just so happens to be an ex-Sith Lord from the time of the Old Republic. This story will put this Sith way outside of his comfort zone amd show him what it means to have a family. This takes place in an AU and after a few upcoming fics


"Do I really need to be here?"

"Hey you are a part of this family now."

"How can I be a part of a family I have never met before?"

"Well look at it this way: I am probably the only man in the galaxy that trusts you and accepts you as a friend. Who else can you go to."

"... You have a point. But this is much different. I have fought in wars, destroyed armies, killed generals, not to mention killed Jedi. But I have never been to something like this. And do you really trust me to be around them?"

"I do. Even if I didn't, fifty percent of the people in that room are as powerful as me and the ones that aren't can provide cover fire."

"That is reassuring."

"Oh you will be fine. The ones you really have to watch out for are the short, non-force sensitive ones. Especially the one with the beak."

"Wait, what?"

"And here we go."

Two men came to a door at the end of a stone corridor. One was dressed in ebony and amber robes with an air of dark powet was very uncomfortable about his situation. The other wore a loose brown shirt and robe-like pants with a spacer's belt around his waist with a wide grin on his face as he opened up the door.

The door opened to a large dining room with two long tables set side by side. Seated at the tables was a strange assortment of individuals. A S'Kytri dressed in jedi robes sitting beside and talking to a white wookie with a cyborg arm and chest that apparently spoke perfect galactic basic. A blue twi'lek sat by her husband, a man with short black hair and a very uncharacteristic smile and a young half Twi'lek boy seated between them. The Twi'lek's belly extended further out than normal, because she was alnost eight months pregnant. A beautiful black haired woman with blue eyes, about the same age as the man who opened the door, sat next to a sixteen year old girl who was the spitting image of herself though the girl wore jedi robes. Beside that girl was a boy Miraluka who was maybe a year or two younger than she. The boy had silver blond hair and a heavy cloth tied over his eyes, and a blind man's staff leaned against his seat. Across the table sat two children. One was a little girl with black hair like her mother's, she had a cloth around her eyes as well but seemed to be getting along perfectly fine. Next to her was a human boy with sandy blond hair was concentrating ever so hard to keep an apple afloat and move it over his sister's head. On another table was a group of seven human spacers of all shapes and sizes and a dark green Tiss' Shar who was their captain. Lastly, and certainly not least, a white feathered, short, avian humanoid with antennas sat on the end of the table closest to the door. She wore a white lab coat and a brief case was set beside her chair.

"Hello everyone!" Deadron Torad yelled over the noise of conversation as he entered the room. A resounding chorus of greetings met him as he walked through the doorway. Friends and family offered handshakes and hugs to Deadron as he walked down to the end of the table. Ketzel Viren tried to hide himself behind Deadron as the greetings came. A few questioning looks passed over him, wondering who this dark-clad man was.

Deadron strolled over to the far end of the table where his family sat.

"You are late," the black-haired woman said.

"I know," Deadron said as he leaned down and kissed the woman. "But it took some convincing to get our new friend to come."

The Miraluka rose again and motioned for Viren to come to him at the front of the table.

Viren shook his head.

Deadron motioned again.

Viren shook his head again and mouthed the word "No".

Deadron got serious and motioned quickly one more time.

Viren conceded and walked over to Deadron.

The Miraluka lifted a glass in the air and tapped it a few times with a metal fork, "Alright settle down everyone. I have someone to introduce." All eyes turned towards the two men that now stood at the end of the table. All Viren wanted to do was sink into the cowl of his cloak and disappear from this dreadful nightmare.

"Viren, this is the family."

"Jedi master Kharys," Deadron said motioning at the S' kytri.

"Jedi master Tark Rashiek," he said motioning to the white cyborg wookie.

"Jedi master and godmother to my children Ardana, her husband Galen Marek, and their son Taren."

"That is the crew of The Nest," Deadron said pointing at the group of spacers at the other table, "We have Geoff, Ryan, Jack, Ray, Gavin, Michael, Jace, and Nut'Ri."

"My wife Joan. My firstborn daughter Catherine, my first son Erik, my younger son Carlis, and my youngest daughter Aelynn."

"And lastly, my adopted mother?/crazy aunt/partner in crime Aelynn," Deadron said motioning to the white Fosh doctor at the other end of the table.

"Family, this is my good friend Ketzel Viren." The crowd of belonging misfits followed up with a chorus of hellos.

"Deadron this is..." Viren said trying his hardest to disappear into the floor. "I really really don't..."

"Nonsense Viren," Deadron said quietly to Viren, "Welcome to the Light Side."

"It burns."

"Oh shut up and take your seat."

Viren sat to Deadron's left with Deadron's daughter to his immediate right. For some reason the little girl seemed fascinated with the dark robed man that sat beside her. She kept a huge grin on her face and she continued to look up at him. Viren noticed the little girl right off and prevented eye contact. Children, like Sith, can sense fear. And this little girl was drinking it in.

"Master Dearon," an electronic, Scottish accented voice came from an now open door, "Dinner, is served. And you forgot to introduce me."

A mechanical body walked from out the kitchen in an apron and chef hat. The droid looked like a very heavily modified battle droid from the clone wars with pieces of all kinds of droids meshed into a beautiful creation of science. "Right. Viren this is Aelynn's monster, our protocol droid, and demolitions expert Jarvis. He also happens to be the chef this evening." As Deadron finished the comment a group of servers came out and began putting a range of foods across the dining table.

"Do you think this is a little much?" Joan said leaning over to Deadron.

"Maybe a little. The servers are actually students that I promised a week off from History lessons if they did this."

"You didn't."

"I did," Deadron replied with a smile, "I wanted this to be special, because how often is the entire family together. And plus," Deadron looked toward Viren who was still cringing at the little girls gaze, "it is a good time to see if I can't break him."

Joan couldn't help but laugh quietly to herself, "Oh please be nice."

The family began to dive into the food and Deadron watched as his daughter Aelynn scooted closer and closer to Viren and as Viren tried to scoot farther away, "Too late. I already broke out the big guns." The two smiled as they watched the situation unfold.

Aelynn continued to smile and stare at Viren through her cloth as he grew increasingly uncomfortable. "Can I help you with something," Viren said calmly to the little miraluka.

"No," she replied happily taking a bite of the meal in front of her.

"Then why are you staring at me?"

"'Cause you are new. And you seem nice."

"Believe me, I am not nice."

"Hmmmm." Aelynn took one more bite of her food and a drink of her juice before she stood up from her seat and walked over to her dad. Deadron and his daughter wispered back and forth to each other as Joan laughed quietly. Viren suddenly got really nervous. The little girl and her father finally nodded one last time and she began to walk over to Viren again. Viren's eyes widened in horror as the little girl hopped up and sat down on Viren's lap and started swinging her legs happily.

The former Sith lord of the Old Sith Empire looked up at his friend the Miraluka Jedi master of the New Jedi Order in confusion, looking for justification for what had just happened. He was met only by a toothy grin and an evil chuckle. "Little girl why don't you... this is... I don't..."

She only looked up at the man and giggled, "You are funny."

Viren blushed and looked at the little girl. Such innocence. Happiness. A feeling began to well up inside him, one he had not felt a hint of since he had last seen his sister or his niece. It almost hurt him, driving out whatever evil thoughts that could even try to form in his mind. He looked around at all the smiling faces. Happiness. Peace. Here there was no Sith or Jedi. No Good or Evil. No conflict, no war, no politics, no hate. All was peaceful. Something was present that seemed almost lost from the galaxy that Viren had known. Something both the Sith and Jedi had lacked from his time. Love. Pure, unfiltered, uncaring, love. This was a family.

The group ate and conversed happily for almost an hour through three courses. "Alright everyone I would like to make a toast," Deadron said as he stood from his seat and lifted his glass. "To family. For those who are here with us, those that have past, and those who are yet to be. Though at times we may annoy the kriff out of each other, offer death threats, disagree on certain matters, and make really bad jokes, we are family. We have come from very different places and all walks of life to be here together and that is what I am thankful for." Deadron raised his glass a little higher, "To family."

A chorus of 'To family' rang up from everyone around the table except one. Viren was still taken back from the feeling that had now overwhelmed him. Aely looked up at Viren before taking a drink of her juice for the toast, "Mr. Viren, you are supposed to lift your cup like this and say 'to family'." She demonstrated the process again and waited for Viren to do the same. Ketzel's hand quivered as he picked up his glass. Now every face was turned to him, all were smiling, inviting him to do what the little girl bid.

"... To- to family." He said quietly before taking a drink. After he had done it, a cheer came up from the crowd.

Sith Lord Ketzel Viren now sat in a comfortable chair on a porch looking outwards at the sunset, with the little girl asleep in his arms. She had drug him around all the day after the meal, introducing her to everyone of their family and everyone of her "dollies". As soon as he sat down she had fallen asleep in his arms.

"Want me to take her?" Deadron said as he walked out onto the porch holding two bottles of liquid refreshments.

"No! I- I mean no. Wouldn't want to wake her."

Deadron passed one of the bottles to Viren who excepted it gratefully. He sat in a chair beside Viren looking out at the sunset. The sun glinted off of the still water of the pond in the lawn outside the stone building. And the trees cast magnificent shadows over the grounds. "So... how was it?"

Viren sighed, "Do you want the truth or what you want to hear?"

"I want to hear the truth."

"Well the truth is that it was one of the most torturous nights of my life."

Deadron couldn't help but chuckle to himself. "Kids will do that to you." The two sat quietly for a few minutes admiring the beauty of the sunset.

"You have a great family Deadron. Truly."

"Yeh. I guess I am just lucky... what about you? Did you have family before?"

"A sister," he said. Viren looked down at the little girl nestled in his arms. "And a niece, and a group of apprentices that... that were close."

"You miss them."

"Now more than ever. Now I also see what a fool I was. I only taught them to hate, and they died fighting a war with no winner," Viren had to close his eyes and shake his head once to get rid of the visions of his lost family, if it could have been called that.

"I am sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"Well dragging you here for one. I am also sorry for your loss. I can't imagine what it is like to be told that everything you know is gone."

"Psh. Sith don't morn the loss of Sith. We would see it as an opportunity to gain more power. Meaningless, temporal power. And don't apologize for bringing me here," Viren looked down once again at little Aely in his arms, "This was good."

"You know you are welcome to stay."

"... Thank you. Really I am grateful. But I am going to need time to adjust to this new galaxy."

"Well I actually have a plan for that," Deadron said taking another drink.

Viren raised an eyebrow at that, "Since when do you have a plan?"

"Well we have been planning something like this for a long time, before I even met you. To help prevent threats, like Mandalor, from ever happening. We want to put agents in the field under deep cover all across the galaxy. Preferably these Sentinels would know some dark side techniques as well, like greywalkers. But until now this Sentinel project has lacked someone who can teach them those techniques."

"And you want me to teach _Jedi_?"

"The rest of the council is a little skeptical on the matter. But master Ti and I support the matter and the position is open if you want it."

Viren laughed, something he had not done in a very long time, "You would just give me a teaching job _to teach Jedi_?"

"Viren, I wouldn't want anyone else in that position. But now is not the time for business. It is a time to be grateful for what we have."

"I don't even know what I have now..."

"Viren, we have now. This moment of peace. Let's just try to enjoy it."

Deadron reached his hand out with the glass bottle in it and Viren did the same. The bottles clinked together in a toast for this moment, and all the peaceful moments that are yet to come.

_Hey readers! This fic was really fun to write because of my love for Thanksgiving and the spirit of being grateful. This story is filled to the brim with OCs made by friends and myself that have been adopted into my head canon and I had tons of fun putting them into this story. _

_This fic shows what I am most thankful for in my life. My Family. I am really blessed to have such a wonderful (albeit abnormally large) family of 14 that have come from all over the world. From Ethiopia, to Korea, to Vietnam, and here in the states. I love them all and they are the most wonderful thing in my life._

_So in the spirit of Thanksgiving, please be grateful for all that you are blessed to have. And if you took the time to read this, leave a review with what you are thankful for and pass on the spirit of being thankful to all you meet today (November 27, 2014) and any other day if the year._

_"The happiest people I have ever met, are those who reflect the most for what they have and show gratitude towards it."_

_Happy Thanksgiving Everyone amd have a great holiday season!_


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